Champions League gameweek 6 saw another miraculous night for Manchester City, as a depleted Sky Blues side earned an impressive 2-0 victory away to AS Roma – booking their place in the last-16 of the competition at the Italian‘s expense.
The Premier League holders looked down and out following their 2-1 home defeat to CSKA Moscow in early November, but they have dug out some incredible results against Bayern Munich and AS Roma to earn qualification into the next round against all odds.
“We are a strong unit and we believed in it. We’ve got resolve, we’ve got character and we’ve got great players. Add that all together and you have a chance. We’re moving in the right direction. We’ve won six games on the spin now and have really stepped it up,” said Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart.
Manchester City winning away to Roma is an incredible feat, given the fact that Bayern Munich and Juventus are the only sides to have beaten Roma at the Stadio Olimpico since May 2013. This is without Vincent Kompany, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero in the side too, which shows just how resilient the Sky Blues can be when all seems lost.
With two league titles won in three years, Manchester City’s struggles in the Champions League have led to criticism, as their squad is as expensive as the big-spending clubs, but they fall short of expectations. But now they are into the last-16, they stand an honest chance of making it further.
While expected to be named in a difficult draw due to finishing second in their, City stand a slim chance of being drawn against AS Monaco and FC Porto in the next round, which would certainly make them favourites to reach the quarter-finals and potentially further.
To beat Bayern Munich and AS Roma with so many key players out will certainly give the Sky Blues hope of beating any opponent, and manager Manuel Pellegrini appears to be getting to grips with the competition now, favouring a more pragmatic approach. But City have also hit form at the right time.
Six wins on the bounce in all competitions makes the squad desperate to keep their winning run going regardless of who they face. They are starting to believe in their abilities too, rather than being overawed by the calibre of opposition as they perhaps were in the past, so they won’t be fearful should they receive a tricky last-16 draw.
Few gave Manchester City a chance of beating Bayern Munich and AS Roma to secure their place in the next round, but they are now the fifth favourites to win this season’s Champions League. Can the Sky Blues go all the way in Europe?
